Combined Touchpad and Keypad Using Force Input

1. An input device comprising: a sensing surface configured to detect positional information and force information for an input object, wherein the sensing surface comprises a plurality of non-overlapping sub-regions, and wherein the respective positions of the plurality of non-overlapping sub-regions within the sensing surface are dynamically configurable by at least one of: a user of the input device; and a software application; and a determination module configured to: dynamically select one of a touchpad mode and a keypad mode based on the software application executing on a host processor, wherein, while in touchpad mode, the determination module detects movement of the input object on the sensing surface; and dynamically select, based on the force information and while in the touchpad mode, an operation from a plurality of operations comprising a positioning operation when the force information specifies a first force level, a selection operation when the force information specifies a second force level, and an activation operation when the force information specifies a third force level, wherein the positioning operation is to update a display based on the positional information from a sub-region of the plurality of non-overlapping sub-regions, the selection operation is to select the sub-region located at the position, and the activation operation is to execute a program corresponding to the sub-region, wherein the input device is configured to be operated according to the operation.

2. The input device of claim 1 , further comprising a touchscreen, the touchscreen comprising the sensing surface.

3. The input device of claim 1 , wherein the plurality of non-overlapping sub-regions comprise less than the entirety of the sensing surface.

4. The input device of claim 1 , wherein the plurality of non-overlapping sub-regions are substantially coextensive with the sensing surface.

5. The input device of claim 1 , wherein each of the plurality of non-overlapping sub-regions corresponds to a respective one of a plurality of user selectable items.

6. The input device of claim 5 , wherein the input device is configured to display an overlay, wherein the overlay defines a unique arrangement of the plurality of non-overlapping sub-regions and is configured for attachment to and removal from the input device.

7. The input device of claim 5 , wherein at least one of the plurality of user selectable items comprises an alphanumeric character, a symbol, a command, and an icon.

8. The input device of claim 1 , wherein the input device is configured for use with a host electronic device having the host processor.

9. The input device of claim 8 , further comprising a keyboard communicatively coupled to the host processor, and wherein the input device comprises a portion of the keyboard.

10. The input device of claim 9 , wherein the host processor is configured to provide feedback to the user regarding at least one of: the layout of the sub-regions; and the positional information.

11. The input device of claim 10 , wherein the feedback comprises at least one of: visual, audio, and haptic information.

12. The input device of claim 1 , wherein the sensing surface comprises a first array of electrodes for capacitively detecting the positional information, and a second array of electrodes for detecting the force information.

13. An input device comprising: a display; a sensing region configured to detect positional information and force information for an input object in the sensing region, wherein the sensing surface comprises a plurality of non-overlapping sub-regions and wherein the respective positions of the plurality of non-overlapping sub-regions within the sensing surface are dynamically configurable by at least one of: a user of the input device; and a software application; and a determination module configured to: select one of a touchpad mode and a keypad mode based on the software application executing on a host processor, wherein, while in touchpad mode, the determination module detects movement of the input object on the sensing surface; and select, based on the force information and while in the touchpad mode, an operation from a plurality of operations comprising a positioning operation when the force information specifies a first force level, a selection operation when the force information specifies a second force level, and an activation operation when the force information specifies a third force level, wherein the positioning operation is to update a display based on the positional information from a sub-region of the plurality of non-overlapping sub-regions, the selection operation is to select the sub-region located at the position, and the activation operation is to execute a program corresponding to the sub-region.

14. A program product comprising: A) an input device sensor program configured to: detect positional information and force information for an input object interacting with a plurality of non-overlapping sub-regions of a sensing surface of the input device, wherein the respective positions of the plurality of non-overlapping sub-regions within the sensing surface are dynamically configurable by at least one of: a user of the input device; and a software application; select one of a touchpad mode and a keypad mode based on the software application executing on a host processor, wherein, while in touchpad mode, the input device sensor program detects movement of the input object on the sensing surface; select, based on the force information and while in the touchpad mode, an operation from a plurality of operations comprising a positioning operation when the force information specifies a first force level, a selection operation when the force information specifies a second force level, and an activation operation when the force information specifies a third force level, wherein the positioning operation is to update a display based on the positional information from a sub-region of the plurality of non-overlapping sub-regions, the selection operation is to select the sub-region located at the position, and the activation operation is to execute a program corresponding to the sub-region; and operate the input device according to the operation; and B) non-transitory computer-readable media on which the input module sensor program resides.